Gazing at the starry sky and enjoying its beauty may soon become a thing of the past because dark skies, one of the natural scenic resources, are fast disappearing because of the pollution caused from city lights.
Calling upon the people to join the global campaign against light pollution, the International Dark-Sky Association (IDA) is celebrating International Dark-Sky Week from April 5-11.
Chief Minister Oommen Chandy inaugurated the International Dark Sky Week celebrations here at the Priyadarshini Planetarium on Friday.
The first chapter of the International Dark-Sky Association (IDA), which is a non-profit organisation headquartered in the U.S. devoted to preserving and protecting the heritage of dark skies, was launched at the function. Speaking at the function Mr. Chandy said a lot of energy was wasted due to inefficient use of lights. Poet Sugathakumari was also honoured for her contributions made to the ‘Save Silent Valley’ campaign. ‘Losing the Dark,’ a film-based planetarium show, which is a collaboration of Loch Ness Productions and IDA, was screened at the function. The video highlights the effects of light pollution and ways to mitigate it.
Founder president of IDA, India Chapter, Arun George said that it was important to educate the people on the importance of preserving dark skies.
“The IDA has held talks with many governmental and non-governmental institutions on introducing lighting concepts that is being followed in a number of countries. This can not only preserve the dark skies and reduce pollution but also save energy,” he said.
